Spike.



W. H. HORTON.

SPIKE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I. 1916.

1,223,05 1 Patented Apr. 17, 1917.

INYENTOR W ITNESSES ATTORNEY WILLIAM H. HORTON, 0F FERNDALE, NEW YORK.

SPIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 7, 1916. Serial No. 118,867.

To all whom it may concern: 1

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. HORTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ferndale, in the county of Sullivan and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spikes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to spikes, and has for its object to provide a spike for securing railroad rails to ties in such manner that said rails can not become loosened from the ties nor the spikes withdrawn by the operation of trains passing over the track.

Another object of the invention is to provide a railroad spike with means adjacent its point which may be forced into the spike when the latter is driven into a tie and be projected outwardly below the tie after being driven home, said means serving to lock the spike in position in the tie and securely hold the rail thereon.

With the above-as the principal objects in view the invention consists of the novel construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an elevation of a portion of a rail secured to a tie by the improved spike,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in elevation of the pointed end with the spike partly in section showing the arrangement of the looking devices in connection therewith,

Fig. 3 is a view of the point of the spike as viewed at right angles to Fig. 2,

Fig. 4: is a horizontal sectional view on the line 44 of Fig. 3 with the locking elements removed,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the locking elements, and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a detail of the invention.

In the drawings, 10 indicates the rail, 11 the tie, and 12 the spike which, as shown in Fig. 1, is driven through the tie until the head 13 of the spike bears upon the flange of the rail at which time the point will have penetrated entirely through the tie and passed a short distance beyond the under side thereof sufficiently far to enable the locking members 14 to-engage the bottom of the tie.

The spike 12, as shown, has a chamber 15 extending into the body thereof from each of two opposite sides, said chambers extending nearly through the spike, a smaller opening 16 passes from the chamber through the remainder of the spike to the side opposite the opening of said chamber. These chambers which may be square, round or any other shape desired, but here shown as being made square, are each adapted to contain a locking member 14: comprising a head portion 17 and a stem 18, the latter being beveled as at 19 on the under side at its outer end. The head 17 fits snugly within the chamber 15 but is adapted to move longitudinally of said chamber and is normally held in the bottom thereof by a coil spring 20 to project the stem 18 through the opening 16 in the spike. One end of the spring bears against the head 17 and the other end against a plug 21 that fills the outer end of the chamber and is held by wedging, welding or any other means that will secure the plug is place and flush with theouter face of the spike. The locking members 14 as shown are in the same horizontal plane and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the spike and are flat on their upper surfaces to bear against the under side of the tie 17 The beveled under sides 19 are to enable the spike to be readily driven into the tie.

To enable the spikes to be driven into the tie, the' locking members 14 are forced into the chamber 15 and held therein by a metal band 22, Fig. 6, which is placed around the end of the spike so as to holdthe locking members within the spike and their points flush with the outer sides thereof. On driving the spike into the tie, the metal band is torn from the spike or forced upwardly thereon but not until the locking members have passed into the opening in the tie formed by the spike, said members, owing Patented Apr. 17, 1917.

to their inclined under sides 19, passing downwardly through the tie, and when they emerge therefrom at'the bottom, the springs 20, force the stems 18 out into the soft ashes or other material used for ballasting the road and projecting under the tie, securely hold the spike in place and prevent withdrawal thereof. Y

While I have described what I consider the best form of the device known to me at the present time, .it is to be understood that changes in the construction and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and such changes falling within the terms of the claims are to be considered as forming a part of my invention.

What I claim is: p 1. A spike having. a transverse cavity therein, a locking member slidable longitudinally in said cavity crosswise of the spike and adapted to be projected outwardly through an opening in one side of said spike, and resilient means for projecting the locking member.

2. A spike having a transverse cavity therein closed at one end, a locking member slidable in said cavity transversely of the spike and adapted to be projected outwardly through an opening in the closed end of the cavity, resilient means within the cavity for projecting the locking member, and a closure for the open end of the cavity. v

8. A spike having a chamber extending from one side laterally into the body of the spike near its point and a small opening from said chamber through the opposite side of the spike, and a locking means slidable within said chamber and adapted to be projected through said opening beyond said opposite side of the spike.

4. A spike having a chamber formed within the body thereof near its point and eX tending from one side transversely therein and having a small opening through the op posite side of the spike, a locking member comprising a head and a stem adapted to slide in said chamber and through said open ing, and resilient means within said chamber forcing said locking member outwardly beyond said opposite side of the spike.

5. A spike having a transverse chamber formed Within the body of the same near the point thereof and extending from one side nearly through the spike, a small open ing from the bottom of said chamber through the opposite side of the spike, a locking member slidable in said chamber and adapted to be projected through said opening beyond the plane of the spike, said member comprising a stem and an enlarged head, and resilient means within said chamber to force said locking means outwardly, and a plug for closing the open end of the chamber and retaining the resilient means therein.

6. A spike having a pair of transverse chambers formed in the body thereof near the point and opening each at one end on opposite sides of the spike, a small opening from the bottom of each chamber through the adjacent side of the spike, a locking member in each of said chambers adapted to be projected outwardly through the small opening at the bottom thereof, a spring for pressing each of said locking members outwardly, and a plug for closing the open end of each chamber.

7. A spike having a locking member on each side near its point and adapted to be moved transversely of the spike within the body of the same, and a removable band surrounding said spike near its pointed end for retaining said locking members within the body of the spike.

In testimony whereof I afix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM H. HORTON.

Witnesses WALTER E.- TRAVIS, VERA INTERNANN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C. 

